Orangutan Facts Orangutans – like all apes – are fascinating, intelligent animals. Almost human in many ways, they suffer greatly at the hands of humans. Orangutans are found only in Sumatra and Borneo in S.E. Asia. They are by far the most arboreal of the larger apes, living almost exclusively in the rainforest canopy. Though … Read more
The Big Cats Everybody knows what a cat is. Once you have seen a single adult cat, you can instantly recognise nearly every other species as being closely related. The possible exceptions to this are the Jaguarundi and the Manul, as well as the Flat-headed Cat and perhaps the Kodkod. However, once you look closely … Read more
What Do Mammals Eat? So, what do mammals eat? Well, just about everything except leaf litter and mature tree wood is eaten by mammals somewhere. This brief introduction to the different aspects of mammalian diets will make use of a collection of common terms such as Carnivore, Herbivore, Insectivore, Frugivore and Omnivore. While these terms … Read more
Locomotion In Mammals Locomotion in mammals, and other animals, is about how animals move. Like most reptiles, the majority of mammals travel across land, but they don’t all move the same way. Mammals, however, move much further and more often than reptiles. Partly, this is made possible by the possession of a homeothermic body. Partly … Read more
Mammalian Blood Blood is the life giving river that flows within us all. Endlessly – day in, day out – blood is flowing around the veins and arteries of all living vertebrates. In the same way that rivers nurture and cleanse the land, so our blood feeds, fuels and cleanses our bodies. Blood is basically … Read more
What is Warm Blooded? We are warm blooded animals. So are all other mammals – to a certain extent – and birds. However, warm blood is not really the question… many reptiles have blood far warmer than ours, but only on hot days. In fact, blood temperature is merely a reflection of body temperature. The … Read more
The Placental Mammal and Reproduction Most mammals – excepting Monotremes and Marsupials – are placental mammals. Yaks, rabbits, cows, hippopotamuses, bats and humans all fall within this category. In all other vertebrates, the developing embryo is separated from its mother’s body by the amniotic membrane which surrounds the egg. The reason for this is that … Read more
How Long do Animals Live? This question is not as simple as it seems. Two different ways of looking at it are: “How long can an individual animal live?” and “How long do members of a given species usually live?” The first question really means how long can an individual animal live under ideal circumstances, i.e. … Read more
Skin Colour in Humans Everybody knows that humans come in different forms. Particularly we note that people have a wide range of skin colors. While this has been the excuse for huge amounts of human inhumanity since the dawn of human existence, its causes have been much misunderstood. Even today scientists do not agree 100% … Read more
Facts About Mammal Teeth Teeth are important things… without them, eating becomes a lot more difficult. In mammals, teeth have reached their highest peak of evolution. Mammalian teeth are both more complicated and more efficient than in other vertebrates. Teeth are heavy and require considerable muscle to operate efficiently. This has made an important contribution … Read more